Di African Democratic Congress (ADC) don come out strong to condemn di agreement wey President Bola Tinubu sign wit United Kingdom government for London. Di deal wey worth £746 million na for rehabilitation of Tin Can and Apapa Ports for Lagos, but ADC dey see am as one arrangement wey go put Nigeria for serious disadvantage.
According to Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, di National Publicity Secretary of ADC, di party believe say dis agreement na like to mortgage Nigeria future. Dem talk say di UK government already get better trade advantage over Nigeria, and dis new deal go make matters worse. Di party release statement say dem no understand why Nigerian government go enter agreement wey no favour di kontri.
From wetin ADC explain, di £746 million deal go dey delivered through UK Export Finance (UKEF) Buyer Credit Facility wey Citibank, N.A., London Branch arrange. UKEF na UK government export credit agency wey dey help foreign buyers get financing from commercial banks to buy UK goods and services. Usually, dis kain projects require say UK companies get big participation.
Di arrangement work like dis: UKEF guarantee loan wey foreign buyer collect from commercial bank. Di money den go dey used to pay for UK goods and services, wit di bank paying UK exporter directly on behalf of di buyer. For dis particular Nigeria-UK deal, at least £236 million of di total amount go go to British companies as supplier contracts.
One specific example na British Steel wey go supply 120,000 tonnes of steel billets under £70 million contract. Dis one na di largest UKEF-backed export order for British Steel, and e go dey used for di port rehabilitation projects for Nigeria. ADC dey worry say dis mean plenty of di money go remain for UK or go return back dia.
Di party express serious concern say Nigerian government fit enter agreement wey dey put di kontri for disadvantage position, all just to secure foreign validation. Dis dey happen as millions of Nigerians dey face poverty, unemployment, and worsening insecurity. ADC talk say dem no understand di logic behind such move.
ADC don ask di All Progressives Congress (APC) led Federal Government to explain di repayment terms of di commercial loan to Nigerians. Dem want know di duration of di loan and di interest rate wey go apply. Di party also demand to know wetin percentage of local goods, services, and subcontracting go involve for di port rehabilitation project.
Odda questions wey ADC ask include how many direct and indirect jobs di project go create for Nigerians. Dem also want know di project timeline and when exactly di ports go become fully operational after rehabilitation. Training, apprenticeships, skills transfer, and limits on expatriate staff na odda areas wey ADC demand transparency.
Di party talk say based on information available for UK government website, di deal dey described as ‘major vote of confidence in UK manufacturing.’ ADC see dis as confirmation say di arrangement dey designed to benefit UK economy more than Nigeria own. Dem talk say Nigeria suppose dey careful wit such international agreements wey fit tie di kontri hand for many years to come.
As di matter dey now, ADC don call for proper investigation into di agreement and demand say Federal Government make all documents concerning di deal public. Di party insist say Nigerian people deserve to know every detail of arrangement wey go affect di kontri economy for many years. Dem talk say transparency na key to avoid future problems.
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